


Call-And-Response

by MissEllaVation



Category: U2
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-06
Updated: 2017-01-06
Packaged: 2018-09-15 05:03:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9219944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissEllaVation/pseuds/MissEllaVation
Summary: A cryptic phone call on a lonely winter's evening.





	

**Author's Note:**

> In which I do annoying “experimental” things to once again avoid writing a sex scene. (There’s _some_ sex… )
> 
> About the title: If you’ve heard the song [Heartland](https://youtu.be/9HZCbba6V8U) (of course you have), you know that each time Bono sings a line, Edge echoes him with those haunting oh’s that trail off into his unmistakable vibrato. Well, one day, as I was listening—while driving my Prius along Route 66, in the howling wind and stuff—the phrase “call-and-response” came to me from a long-buried third-grade music class. 
> 
> “In music,” says Wikipedia, “a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first.” So in this fic, I sort of tried to see if I could make dialogue do that musical thing. This might be a huge pain in the ass to read? If it is, I apologize. But thanks for trying. Thanks for bearing with me.
> 
> [This song](https://youtu.be/FDFK704DLDY) seems to have sealed the word “ribbon” in my head for eternity. I wish they’d put it on an album. [Ring My Bell](https://youtu.be/kU9faERbno0) was a massive disco hit for Anita Ward in 1979. 
> 
> A million thanks to [likeamadonna](http://archiveofourown.org/users/likeamadonna/pseuds/likeamadonna) for the concept of “Edge-Light,” and for SO much encouragement. Thanks also to [spacemonkey](http://archiveofourown.org/users/spacemonkey/pseuds/spacemonkey), for the beloved image of Edge moping near a window. ;) I love you freakazoids. 
> 
> Bono and Edge are real actual people and none of this ever happened, probably.

_Dublin, winter, 1990_

 

**— Are you near a window? Go to a window that faces west.**

— Hello? Do I know you?

**— It’s me.**

— Yes, I know it’s you.

**— Go to a window that faces west.**

————— I’m going to a window that faces west.

**— Are you there yet? By a window that faces west?**

— Yes.

**— West?**

— Yes!

**— Do you see that light?**

————— What light? Oh, I see a little green light across the water. Like the light on Daisy’s dock.

**— You can see water to your west? That doesn’t make any sense. Never mind. I can’t read maps anyway. But just look at the light. The light in the sky. The _light._**

— Are you referring to the sun?

**— Yes Edge, I am referring to the sun.**

— I can’t really see the sun. It’s setting right now, behind the clouds.

**— Yes, the sun is setting behind the clouds. Right now. That’s the whole point. Those pale streaks of light. Lavender and rose. Those ribbons of light showing through the tear in the clouds.**

— Ribbons of light.

**— Yes, ribbons of light.**

— I like that.

**— Of course you like that. It’s your light.**

— It’s my light?

**— Yes. You know — these overcast days in winter, that are all dark and monochrome —**

— Dark and monochrome, that’s me.

**— And you only get to see the sun at the very last minute, because the wind tears a hole in the clouds, and then the sun breaks through in ribbons of light.**

— Oh, we’re back to the ribbons of light.

**— Yes. Back to the ribbons of light. That’s your light. The Edge-Light.**

————— Why is it the Edge-Light?

**— Because it sounds like you.**

— How can ribbons of light sound like me?

**— Oh, they can. Believe me.**

————— I believe you.

**— You’re smiling. I can hear it.**

— I am smiling, but — has anyone ever suggested that you might have synesthesia?

**— Synesthesia? Never. Anesthesia maybe. And a bit of selective amnesia.**

— Now you’re smiling too.

**— Can you hear me smiling?**

— No. I just know that you are.

**—————— You just know, do you?**

— I do.

**— Well, you’re right.**

—————— Did you really ring just to tell me about ribbons of light?

**— No. I did not really ring just to tell you about ribbons of light. But I did ring.**

— You don’t need to find an excuse, you know.

**— I know.**

—————— You can ring me anytime you want. ——— You can ring my bell.

**— Ah, secret disco queen, are you? Yes, I know. I know very well that I can ring your bell.**

————— _Bono._

**— Anyway. I think I rang because I was feeling a little bit adrift.**

————— Adrift? Wait a minute. _You_ were feeling adrift? You?

**— I know, I know, but —**

— I’m standing here at the window, with this empty house at my back —

**— I know, I know.**

— And when the central heating kicks on, the whole thing creaks like a leaky boat in the night —

**— Oh love, I know.**

— And now I’m down to about one last ribbon of light.

**— Well, the ribbons of light don’t last long. That’s really why I rang.**

————— I’m glad you rang. It doesn’t matter why.

**————— I’m glad I rang too.**

— And I didn’t mean to — I mean, I know we _all_ feel adrift after, well, everything.

**— Adrift, but still floating.**

————— You should write that down.

**— I should.**

— Really, write it down. ——— Are you writing it down? If you don’t, I will.

**————— I’ve written it down, love.**

————— Say that again.

**— I’ve written it down, for fuck’s sake!**

— Not that.

**— Adrift?**

— No. —— Love. Say love. Call me that.

**————— Oh. ——— _Love_.**

— Better.

**— Is it better, love?**

— It’s getting better.

**— Good. I’m glad it’s getting better. Love.**

————— Well. Now that the sun has set, are you going to cut me adrift again?

**— Cut _you_ adrift? Never.**

— Never?

**— Never.**

————— Come over.

**— What, now?**

— Yes. Now. Come over.

**————— I want to.**

— Good. I want you to. Come over.

**— But I can’t. Not tonight. —— But I will! Soon! It’s just a bit difficult right now.**

— A bit difficult.

**— Yes. You know how it is. The baby sleeps at odd times. _She_ tries to sleep when the baby sleeps. She’s tired out. ——— You know how it is.**

— I do know how it is.

_**— Edge.** _

— No, I _do_ know how it is! Of course I do. No one knows better than I do.

**— Love.**

— But don’t call me _love_ if you can’t come out tonight. Don’t call just to tell me about ribbons of light.

**— I didn’t call about the ribbons of light. ——— I miss you.**

— Tell me about it.

**— I _am_ telling you about it.**

— No, tell me ——— Look. I’m still standing at this window, facing west. Because of you. Because I trust you. I trust in your enthusiasm. The window is just a black rectangle now, no light left, but I haven’t moved. Where are you? ——— I want to imagine where you are.

**————— Well. I’ve moved around a bit. Right now I’m in the little room at the back.**

— The little room at the back?

**— With the view of the sea.**

— Ah. The little room at the back, with the view of the sea. The little room that doesn’t face west. The little room with the red couch.

**— Yes, the little room with the red couch. ——— And you’re right, it doesn’t face west.**

————— Please come over.

_**— Edge.** _

— Come over. Not tonight, I know. But soon.

**————— I will. Soon. As soon as possible. I promise.**

— Good. ——— You’ll be glad you did.

**————— Will I?**

— You will.

**— Tell me all about it.**

— I’ll tell you nothing. You’ll find out when you get here.

**————— _Tell_ me, Edge.**

————— I’m not telling.

**— All right, don’t tell. ——— I’ll ask you leading questions instead.**

— Leading questions?

**— Leading questions. Such as ——— why is my red couch so fixed in your memory?**

————— You know why.

**— Tell me anyway.**

— Tell you anyway?

**————— Yeah. Tell me anyway. Recount the reasons you recall the red couch.**

— Oh. The games are afoot, are they?

**— They are.**

— Well then. ——— It was about a month ago.

**— Yes, a month ago.**

— Quite a long time ago, really.

**————— I’m sorry, Edge.**

————— It’s all right. ——— And the house was empty.

**— Empty, except for you and me.**

— Except for you and me. And some drinking had taken place.

**— The Bordeaux I was saving for a special occasion.**

— Well, it _was_ a special occasion.

**————— It certainly became one.**

— And it was unseasonably warm.

**— I did feel warm.**

— You certainly did.

**— And while the red couch was roomy, we were sitting close together at one end.**

— Because they make us do that for telly interviews. Now it’s a habit.

**— Because of the window. And the sky. We were watching the ribbons of light in the sky.**

— Yes. We were looking through your window in the sky, at your ribbons of light. You were wearing a sky-blue shirt.

**— It matched my eyes. You said that.**

————— I did say that, didn’t I.

**— You did say it. And I’d opened most of the buttons because of the unseasonable warmth.**

— You’d opened most of the buttons because you don’t know how buttons work.

**— Sorry?**

— Nothing. ——— You had such a light around you. Like the blue sky. I couldn’t stop looking.

**————— But you did stop. You kept looking away. You kept looking at anything else. The spines of books, the woodgrain in the floorboards.**

— The ribbons of light.

**— Stop that now.**

— But it’s true. ——— I had to look away. I couldn’t just keep staring at you.

**— I didn’t mind. I wanted you to stare.**

— Of course you didn’t mind. You’re _you_ , after all. —— But I just couldn’t take all of you in like that, all at once.

**— I think you could if you wanted to. ——— Take all of me in, all at once.**

————— _Bono_. ——— And then you reached out and pulled off my bandana. You said I had a beautiful head.

**— I said you have a beautiful _face_ , I believe. But your head _is_ magnificent.**

————— Your head is magnificent too. ——— The way you give it.

**— Edge. I am shocked.**

— So was I.

**— But we’re not up to that part yet.**

— Oh. ——— Why aren’t we?

**— Because we’re going over this sequentially.**

— Sequentially. I see. Suddenly you’re quite strict. But that’s all right.

**— So what came next?**

— You did, in fact.

_**— Edge.** _

— All right, all right. What came next was, you said you loved my insane pirate’s hair.

**— I said you have the hair of an insane pirate. But I do love it.**

— Well, _someone_ has to love it. And we became quite involved with each other’s hair for a while.

**— Like a pair of teenage girls at a sleepover.**

— Yes, like a pair of teenage girls at a sleepover. Girls with rough beards, and big shoulders, and great sinewy necks. Girls who kiss each other hard enough to leave abrasions —

**————— Edge, I am becoming confused by your imagery.**

— You weren’t confused that night.

**— I wasn’t confused that night. Very true. I knew exactly what was happening.**

— And you took my face between your hands. You ran your thumbs over my cheeks. You said some very pretty words about the foreign tilt of my eyes and cheekbones.

**— And I also said something about your eyebrows looking like furry punctuation.**

— And _I_ said something about your monumental nose getting in the way of everything.

**— And then you pushed me back against the arm of the couch and kissed me.**

— Yes. I did.

**— In spite of my monumental nose.**

— Yes. In spite of your monumental nose. _Because_ of your monumental nose. ——— You must be aware that you’re a beautiful boy, Bono.

**— As are you, The Edge. ——— And yes, of course I’m aware, but I don’t object to being told. Especially if _you’re_ telling me.**

————— You’re a beautiful boy, Bono.

**————— But you don’t fancy boys, do you.**

— Not as a rule, no.

**— Just me?**

————— Just you.

**— You were pretty rough with my hair, you know. Pulling it the way you did.**

— I wanted your head tilted back. I wanted your neck.

**— You were pretty rough with my neck as well.**

— I’m sorry. Sweetheart.

**— You did keep calling me Sweetheart.**

— I hope that was all right.

**— Of course it was. Love.**

————— You were so —

**————— What was I?**

————— Gorgeous like that, on your back, with your shirt open, and your mouth open, and your lips a little swollen, and your eyes almost closed. ——— Most of the time I think you look like the devil —

**— And you look like an angel. Perfect, serene, and sculpted from —**

— _Sweetheart._ We’re talking about you now.

**— Are we? Right. Good.**

— And you didn’t look like the devil at all. You just looked so open, almost helpless, as if everything that was happening was a big surprise to you, which of course it wasn’t. I mean, this was always there, wasn’t it? We were always like this. You and me. We were always there.

**— Yes. We were. Always there. Always.**

— And then you were — you were straining up toward me, with your shirt falling away from your shoulders, and your body like a satiny Valentine ——— and your face so open. You looked so _young_.

**— I _felt_ young. ——— You were so insistent, with your slim little cowboy hips ——— and I was thinking about all the days and nights in the backs of vans and buses, all that furtive colliding that we never owned up to, not even to each other, underneath the coats and blankets, and all I could ever see was your face, your lips open, taking little sharp breaths like you’d been running. But now, on the red couch, there was no one to overhear. No one to interrupt us. And you took me in your hand ——— you have angel’s hands, The Edge. And I was thinking ——— all the music is right there, it’s in your hands, it lives there, like a pulse in your fingers, and I just —**

————— _Sweetheart._ ——— God. Please come over. I’ll do better by you this time, I swear.

**— Love. There’s no need to do better.**

— There is.

**— Why?**

————— Because then you ———

**— I wanted to do that. I’ve always wanted to. I will _always_ want to.**

————— And you let me make a joke about it just now. ——— I’m sorry.

**— There is no need to be sorry. You had to make that joke; I gave you a straight line. _Magnificent head._ Who says things like that?**

— You did give me a straight line, yes. ——— But it wasn’t funny.

**— Of course it was.**

— No. I mean. You. You were not funny. You were gorgeous. You were more like a saint than a devil. I couldn’t stop touching your face and your hair. Your beautiful mouth. It felt sacred. Your mouth is. You are. Sacred to me.

**————— _Edge._**

— And all that time. We didn’t even know.

**— _I_ knew.**

— _You_ knew. Of course. You know _everything_ , don’t you. Even ——— I'm sorry. I’m slightly jealous of everyone you’ve ever touched.

**————— Only slightly?**

— Only slightly. ——— I want you here now. Please. Sweetheart. It sounds quiet over there. You really won’t come over?

**— Not tonight. ——— I want you, too.**

————— I made you say it.

**— Say what? Oh, _you too_. You did make me say it, you rough beast. ——— How’s this: I want you as well. And in addition.**

————— As well and in addition. Yes, that’s good.

**— Edge.**

— Yes.

**— Love.**

— Yes.

**— We have to take this where it wants to go, don’t we? ——— Or else sublimate it into art.**

— Into art. Into _art_? Can’t we do both?

**— We _can_ do both. ——— Definitely both. In fact ———**

————— Oh, I hear the little wheels turning, Bono.

**————— You do, do you?**

— I do.

**— What if we were to get away. To work on the new record. To dream it all up again, as some brilliant person once said.**

— Some brilliant person indeed.

**— We can say we’re writing. Well, we _will_ be writing —**

— Yes. Of course we’ll be writing.

**— We can go — to a place that’s neither here nor there. A place with no prior associations. A place in flux. A place where no one knows us; where no one expects anything of us. ——— Edge?**

————— Yes.

**— You’ve gone very quiet, The Edge.**

— Yes, I suppose I have gone very quiet. ———

**— Is everything all right?**

— Everything is all right.

**— What are you thinking?**

— I'm thinking ——— that I’m already packing my bags.


End file.
